I've had a kitten for 6 days and think he is sick. Diarrhea, lethargic......Need opinions please!

[taxido]

My cat stopped diarrhoea within one day on a pure boiled chicken breast diet (no bones only meat).  I fed him a very small amount at first just to see what happened, then the next time, a little more.  After two days of this pure boiled chicken diet, his first poop was fine.  

I continued with the chicken breast for a couple more days, to make sure the diarrhoea had stopped -  then gradually introduced my cat food of choice - a VERY TINY AMOUNT, NO MORE THAN A TEASPOON, ALONG WITH THE BOILED CHICKEN.

If there was no reaction and no diarrhoea, I continued with this tiny amount along with the boiled chicken.  If all was well that day and there was no diarrhoea, then the next day I would add a tiny bit more more cat food, and less boiled chicken and so on until he was eating just the cat food and no boiled chicken.  This can take about a week to do.  

However, as you increase the amount of cat food and reduce the amount of boiled chicken, don't be tempted to take the boiled chicken away too soon in favour of a plate of cat food.  This could upset the balance of the thing, diarrhoea may return,  and you will have to start all over again.

This is an expensive and time consuming way to go, but it is worth it, and I think the only way to get your kitty on the right road to full health and happiness and give you peace of mind

Good luck

 

[auroraei]

My cat stopped diarrhoea within one day on a pure boiled chicken breast diet (no bones only meat).  I fed him a very small amount at first just to see what happened, then the next time, a little more.  After two days of this pure boiled chicken diet, his first poop was fine.  

I continued with the chicken breast for a couple more days, to make sure the diarrhoea had stopped -  then gradually introduced my cat food of choice - a VERY TINY AMOUNT, NO MORE THAN A TEASPOON, ALONG WITH THE BOILED CHICKEN.

If there was no reaction and no diarrhoea, I continued with this tiny amount along with the boiled chicken.  If all was well that day and there was no diarrhoea, then the next day I would add a tiny bit more more cat food, and less boiled chicken and so on until he was eating just the cat food and no boiled chicken.  This can take about a week to do.  

However, as you increase the amount of cat food and reduce the amount of boiled chicken, don't be tempted to take the boiled chicken away too soon in favour of a plate of cat food.  This could upset the balance of the thing, diarrhoea may return,  and you will have to start all over again.

This is an expensive and time consuming way to go, but it is worth it, and I think the only way to get your kitty on the right road to full health and happiness and give you peace of mind

Good luck

I'm so happy to hear this worked for you!

I have a question. Did you feed your cat the same cat food that was causing the diareah in the first place?

 

[carolina]

I'm so happy to hear this worked for you!

I have a question. Did you feed your cat the same cat food that was causing the diareah in the first place?

the safer thing to do is not to do that... As if this is food related then there is something in that food causing the issue. There is no magic in this.... By feeding chicken only, what you are doing is eliminating everything else that can be causing a problem. If you go back to the old food and an ingredient there was the problem, you will be back in trouble.
The safest way is to add a limited ingredient diet instead. One protein, one starch, preferably a novel protein he hasn't eaten before.... But if he is ok with chicken.... Then it can be chicken too.... From there you build the diet slowly. It is sold in stores, don't worry.
On my case the only thing that worked was a raw diet.... But my cat has Ibd.... He was fixed in the first day he went on meat, but he can not have anything else..... So I feed him raw.
Now, you haven't updated yet. Have you started and has he eaten it?

 

[auroraei]

the safer thing to do is not to do that... As if this is food related then there is something in that food causing the issue. There is no magic in this.... By feeding chicken only, what you are doing is eliminating everything else that can be causing a problem. If you go back to the old food and an ingredient there was the problem, you will be back in trouble.
The safest way is to add a limited ingredient diet instead. One protein, one starch, preferably a novel protein he hasn't eaten before.... But if he is ok with chicken.... Then it can be chicken too.... From there you build the diet slowly. It is sold in stores, don't worry.
On my case the only thing that worked was a raw diet.... But my cat has Ibd.... He was fixed in the first day he went on meat, but he can not have anything else..... So I feed him raw.
Now, you haven't updated yet. Have you started and has he eaten it?

Yes I'm feeding him chicken breast today, cooked, not raw though. He's eating it. I can't report back on any results yet since it's just the first day. I'll let you guys know!

 

[carolina]

Fantastic! Eating is the first step! :cross: you will get some answer from this!!

 

[peaches08]

the safer thing to do is not to do that... As if this is food related then there is something in that food causing the issue. There is no magic in this.... By feeding chicken only, what you are doing is eliminating everything else that can be causing a problem. If you go back to the old food and an ingredient there was the problem, you will be back in trouble.
The safest way is to add a limited ingredient diet instead. One protein, one starch, preferably a novel protein he hasn't eaten before.... But if he is ok with chicken.... Then it can be chicken too.... From there you build the diet slowly. It is sold in stores, don't worry.
On my case the only thing that worked was a raw diet.... But my cat has Ibd.... He was fixed in the first day he went on meat, but he can not have anything else..... So I feed him raw.
Now, you haven't updated yet. Have you started and has he eaten it?

This was my case as well. Only raw with premix until my grinder came in.

At the time it seemed so counter intuitive to feed raw. I had nothing left to lose so I tried it. Not only were my cats growling at each other when eating (each thought they had the only raw plate), but they got better!

I hope you get results soon with Phoenix. I remember cleaning diarrhea and scooping 4 times a day and Febreeze...it was miserable.

 

[auroraei]

This was my case as well. Only raw with premix until my grinder came in.

At the time it seemed so counter intuitive to feed raw. I had nothing left to lose so I tried it. Not only were my cats growling at each other when eating (each thought they had the only raw plate), but they got better!

I hope you get results soon with Phoenix. I remember cleaning diarrhea and scooping 4 times a day and Febreeze...it was miserable.

I hope this issue can be fixed by slowly introducing cat food to him (if that's the issue), I really don't want to feed my cat raw food. I know it's good for him and he likes it, but, the thought grosses me out, and it's expensive. Those reasons are probably lame to you cat lovers, but I just hope this can be fixed in a different way.

 

[peaches08]

Not lame at all.

For what it is worth, it costs me about $0.33/cat/day to feed them raw chicken thighs with supplements.

 

[auroraei]

Not lame at all.

For what it is worth, it costs me about $0.33/cat/day to feed them raw chicken thighs with supplements.

It's more the thought of feeding him raw chicken and him getting it everywhere, or on his fur, ect.........then there's bacteria everywhere. The thought freaks me out.

 

[peaches08]

It's more the thought of feeding him raw chicken and him getting it everywhere, or on his fur, ect.........then there's bacteria everywhere. The thought freaks me out.

Mine eat out of the bowls, even the chunks. I chunk some of the meat, grind the rest with bones. Bacteria doesn't concern me as much as before, especially with levels found in dry cat food. I don't know about canned. I sear the thighs lightly first so bacteria is pretty much taken care of.

 

[carolina]

Not lame at all.

For what it is worth, it costs me about $0.33/cat/day to feed them raw chicken thighs with supplements.

Way cheaper than canned/dry. and WAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYY cheaper than canned/dry/vet trips, that's for sure! :nod:

I pay more than that, but I am very picky with the meat I feed, and I feed some expensive cuts too - like leg of lamb :lol3:

But when I say Raw saved my cat's life, it is not an exageration - I don't know how long he would live with that daily chronic diarrhea

I too hated the thought of raw - but I have to say, I LOVE feeding them today...... and there is nothing to it - it is the same meat I eat - in fact, I am known to break into their freezer for a good meal when I run out of groceries :lol3:

Do you cook? Have ever cooked? It is the meat you eat - same same..... with a few added bonuses here and there :lol3:

But like I said, raw is a choice..... A good one, but a choice. There are other diets out there - IMHO if you want to go commercial, do start with a limited ingrediets diet, Such as Natural Balance.

 

[peaches08]

You are so right about vet trips! Mine don't even get fleas...I've read that it may be due to the vitamin B levels.

 

[carolina]

It's more the thought of feeding him raw chicken and him getting it everywhere, or on his fur, ect.........then there's bacteria everywhere. The thought freaks me out.

Hum..... Just so you know, there have been many many more cases of salmonella contamination in Kibbles - yep - KIBBLES - than in raw. In both people and pets. No one ever got sick from feeding raw - not a case in history. Two registered cases of cats, and they are "iffy". Both were immune-compromised. You would be surprised at the amount of bacteria in pet food - it is much much more than in raw meat :nod: There were so many recalls this last year alone for Salmonella..... not even funny.

Mine eat out of the bowls, even the chunks. I chunk some of the meat, grind the rest with bones. Bacteria doesn't concern me as much as before, especially with levels found in dry cat food. I don't know about canned. I sear the thighs lightly first so bacteria is pretty much taken care of.

I do not sear - I am not concerned about bacteria at all...... Mine are very neat eaters, and just eat on their bowls :nod:
Once they eat there is nothing on the floor, fur, anywhere.

I do use safe handling measures - I handle the meat the same way I would handle any raw meat. Once I am done preparing it, I spray everything with clorox anywhere, wash the bowls and I am done.

 

[auroraei]

Damn I'm getting schooled over here!

That's a good thing though, it opens up my eyes. We'll see! Oh also, Phoenix is a messy eater. I'm cutting up his chicken breast in chunks and he for some reason must take a chunk out one by one on the floor and eat it x_x

 

[carolina]

Damn I'm getting schooled over here! :lol3: That's a good thing though, it opens up my eyes. We'll see! Oh also, Phoenix is a messy eater. I'm cutting up his chicken breast in chunks and he for some reason must take a chunk out one by one on the floor and eat it x_x

It's because most of us used to think just like you and have the same arguments

Get him a plastic plate mat and put it under his bowl - then you can just clen that. I use Clorox anywhere for mine, but you can wash it with soap and water too :nod:

 

[auroraei]

OH ALSO, quick question. If cooked chicken breast is not a sustanible diet for a cat, then how does feeding raw chicken breast work? Would it not have the same nutrients? Or would you have to do supplements?

 

[carolina]

OH ALSO, quick question. If cooked chicken breast is not a sustanible diet for a cat, then how does feeding raw chicken breast work? Would it not have the same nutrients? Or would you have to do supplements?

Good question!

This is why you can only feed it for 2 weeks. It would be the same if you were feeding raw chicken - the meat only......

For the diet to be balanced, you need to feed a certain percentage of muscle meat (in this case chicken breast), bone, and organs (1/2 liver and 1/2 other secreting organs.

The correct percentage is 80% meat, 10% bone, 5% liver 5% other organs - such as kidney, pancreas, etc.

OR - you can feed meat and supplement it.

I feed meat and organs, and supplement with Calcium instead of feeding bones

 

[auroraei]

Good question!

This is why you can only feed it for 2 weeks. It would be the same if you were feeding raw chicken - the meat only......

For the diet to be balanced, you need to feed a certain percentage of muscle meat (in this case chicken breast), bone, and organs (1/2 liver and 1/2 other secreting organs.

The correct percentage is 80% meat, 10% bone, 5% liver 5% other organs - such as kidney, pancreas, etc.

OR - you can feed meat and supplement it.

I feed meat and organs, and supplement with Calcium instead of feeding bones

Interesting!

 

[taxido]

Auroraei

No.  I chose a plain, cheap, commercial cat food that I had reared all my cats on over the years (including the other 14 year old cat I have at present - although I had changed him to Sheba, a richer cat food until that point, just for a change as he liked that too).  The brand I use is called Felix in the UK and is made by Purina.  It is completely plain basic cat food in jelly and nothing else.  It is also the cheapest of the range. Sometimes a cat food can be too rich and create intolerance.

Felix has been on sale for many years in the UK and is the top preferred cat food.  All my cats have thrived on it.  So far, Felix suits Sammy well.  The range he has is all meat.  However, he has not tried the fish range yet, so I don't know if he is allergic to fish.  When he does, I will do exactly the same procedure to introduce it to him, i.e. a tiny bit at a time.

Incidentally if your cat turns out to be allergic to fish, always check any meat cat food ingredients first because sometimes fish is included with the meat believe it or not, despite the pack saying it is a meat variety cat food! I have found this with the Felix range.

I am also feeding a little dry kibble Royal Canin Sensible 33 because the rescue centre recommended it.  I feed it more as a treat than anything else - just a light sprinkle once a day on his food.  I intend to withdraw it because it makes his stools huge, which means that this food is indigestible.  I believe this is the case with lots of dry kibble - too many grains etc. which cats do not normally eat.

 

[taxido]

[color= rgb(24, 24, 24)]Auroraei[/color]

With regard to feeding raw food, I tend to agree with you.  Whilst I fully agree that raw food is the best way to go, you must stand a very good chance of giving food poisoning to your cat by feeding raw food, full of bacteria - even worms???  I appreciate that many go down this road with good results, but it is not for me.